26 Sep 2016 18:38:33
Just to pass the time. Which current player from any of the leagues could you see becoming a real top class manager?
Although he was probably my favourite player to watch, I never really had Zidane down as a manger when he stopped playing. I know it's early days in his managerial career but he's already won the CL.
Could any of the recent English lot be a future Guardiola or Zidane?
26 Sep 2016 19:40:06
Ander Herrera, intelligent lad who lives and breathes football . He's supposed to have amazing knowledge of players and teams, past and present .
On the pitch he comes across as a talker and organiser and he also has a bit of a tough streak in him, even if he looks like a ten year old :)
26 Sep 2016 20:13:20
As much as I don't like the guy I think John Terry would make a great manager one day.
Can't believe I just said that : (
26 Sep 2016 20:14:32
Mikel Arteta?
26 Sep 2016 20:35:59
Juan Mata I feel would be a good manager because he has a great football mind and seems like he interacts with fans and fellow colleagues well.
From another club I would say Sergio Ramos, he will lose his head a lot but the guy knows how to play football and I think like Zidane would really suit a high profile club.
26 Sep 2016 21:03:06
I'd really like to see some of the English boys going into coaching rather than punditry. I really hope the likes of Lampard, Gerard and Ferdinand have a crack at it. Not like Sol Campbell, when he wanted the England gig with absolutely no coaching under his belt. I'd love to see a young English coach win the CL. Whether it be an English club or one from abroad.
26 Sep 2016 21:04:08
Ronaldo looks like he's smart enough to be a manager.
26 Sep 2016 21:22:24
With the riches on offer for today's players I think we will see even less top bracket players becoming managers due to a lack of incentive.
Frank Lampard always comes across well so would be my shout for an English manager.
26 Sep 2016 21:22:52
Mata, Walcott, Evra, Herrera from post match interviews and I like all four of them whenever they talk. Hard to tell, intelligence is a key part, but so is being tough, dedicated and open minded, inspiration is a key part as well. Some of the best managers on paper make the worst ones in reality, a lot of luck comes into it I think. Political pressure, mates, family, timing - which players you have!
I very much doubt Giggs will make a good manager.
26 Sep 2016 23:07:26
Although not a United player, Kompanys highly regarded to be a top manager in the game.
His knowledge of the technical side of football is of a high level, aspecially for his age but no doubt him being injured for long periods of his career has had a hand in that.
He takes control of the analytical team talks at half time for city which is more than impressive for any player to be involved in.
26 Sep 2016 23:18:09
SAF has previously said that Evra was beyond intelligent and from hearing Evra and seeing the way he conducts himself, it's easy to imagine him going into management and being successful.
With Mata though, Even though he's a little genious, for some reason i think he'd be too soft of a manger. May not be a bad thing these days with the likes of Ranieri, but I just can't imagine Mata being able to bench someone or drop them.
27 Sep 2016 09:18:11
Its rare for top players to go on and become top managers. There are probably several factors, one being drive to succeed, if you achieved everything as a player then maybe its hard to have that determination as a manager, where as a player who feels he didn't achieve all he could as a player will have added determination as a manager.
People struggle to accept people being unable to do what they themselves can. So for a former top player they can come across unsympathetic and too demanding of players with lesser ability than they had. As well as having little apreciation for those players.
Finally having been better naturally than most players during their playing career can cultivate a lack of looking at trying to do things in a different way. For example when you could always beat a player for pace why would you try and do something different. Management is all about adapting and thinking your way out of problems, and quickly. That isn't a trait many top players have to develop during their playing careers.
Without knowing the player personally it will be very hard to predict who could become a top manager based on how they kick a football as the two are unrelated. Lol.
27 Sep 2016 09:58:03
Shappy I could name heaps of top players who have become top managers.
27 Sep 2016 11:34:40
Go on then.
27 Sep 2016 11:48:57
Interesting to hear Klopp last night saying he would've taken up coaching at 26 if the opportunity came up because he wasn't a very good player.
Snappy I think you've got a good point but you look at Zidane, who I thought would give up playing and just disappear from the game. I suppose you just never really know which players could succeed as managers.
27 Sep 2016 11:52:55
Well in PL alone currently you have Pep, Conte, Koeman and even Hughes depending on your interpretation of top manaager.
There are guys like Klinnsman, De Boer, Deschamps, Blanc, Simeone, Zidane, Enrique, Capello, Rikjaard etc.
You. Could even throw in names like Bobby Robson, Heynckes, Clough, Dalglish, Ancelotti, Beckenbaur and even the late Johan Cruyff.
That's just to name a few. Fact of the matter not all top players want to become a manager or some begin then realise it isn't for them. You have just generalised every player in a certain bracket which is just a false statement.
27 Sep 2016 12:08:32
Rooney? Future United manager anyone. Just to rub it into ones who wanted him gone? :D
27 Sep 2016 12:18:01
Maze, that's a nice try and i don't think many will disagree with the last list you have given. But the first 2 are very questionable.
What exactly have have koeman, deboer, zidane, hughes achieved to be called top managers. Hughes has done nothing to be included in the list, zidane fluked a cl, you might disagree but we need to remember the chelsea guy too won it and this was far more fluky than that. Koeman and de boer have won Eredivise but i don't think anyone barring u will count them as top managers.
Klinsmann, Rijkaard, cappello, blanc, descamps even enrique are good managers but will you ever consider them as great ones, not for me.
27 Sep 2016 12:21:37
Shan, i think you at least need to be intelligent to be a manager. Rooney has been described as many things in his entire career but i don't think intelligent was ever used to describe him.
27 Sep 2016 13:25:20
CSM if you read my first paragraph it states what is seen as a top manager is open to interpretation.
If you want to go back there is of course more. You say Zidane fluked a CL. Did he? Or has he had Madrid playing well and breaking records? I think Koeman and De Boer have done pretty well during thier managerial careers and again it comes down to what the interpretation of top manager is.
Klinnsman worked wonders with Germany and laid the foundations for their World Cup winning squad. Didn't Rikjaard bring through the greatest ever player during his reign at Barcelona whilst assembling a great team and winning many trophies? If that isn't considered a top achievement then what is? Capello also a long list of trophies, Blanc has a fair few himself and Deschamps has done very well.
27 Sep 2016 13:38:01
I agree with maze on this. There have been many top players who have had good / v good success as managers.
However often the ones that have been touted as potential top managers due to their playing style / persona Jane not lived up to the billing. Robson adams keane charlton wise styles shearer.
There is no hard and fast rule imo.
27 Sep 2016 14:17:44
Would you interpret Guardiola as a top manager? After all he inherited the best player in the world and a great team from Rijkaard. He inherited the Champions of Europe from Heynckes but did not take Munich to another European final during his period and he went to City where he was given £174 Million to spend, more than any other club?
For me I think the list of top players who go on to become top managers is very thin, just in the Premiership alone, only Conte, Guardiola, Bilic, Koeman and Hughes can brag of having decent playing careers. That's only 20% of managers in the league.
27 Sep 2016 14:32:54
Wow heaps hey Maze, you named 2 or 3 of the 20 EPL managers and even some of those are questionable.
I agree that its open to interpratation but for me a top player would at least be considered "world class" again I know that's subjective. And a top manager has to have won at least something. On that basis have Hughes or Koeman won anything of note as a manager?
What about Keane? Or Robson? Or Bruce? How did these guys do at managing?
My point is very few of the top players who go into managing make it as top managers. The majority of top players become mediocre managers.
Personally I don't feel having a top playing career is a prerequisite to becoming a top manager. that's not to say that some won't but certainly no where near the majority.
Alot of the best managers had very poor playing careers. In fact around half of the managers in the EPL didn't have a great playing career.
27 Sep 2016 16:24:45
Its never easy to do that but I think Evra has a chance, so does Lahm and Muller maybe!
27 Sep 2016 17:20:38
Maze proved his point for me.
Some of you questioning his choice of "top managers", but anybody managing in the top leagues would be a top manager pretty much I say, maybe not Elite, but very good, you can't say "arghh I said top managers and top managers for me are SAF and one or two others". In that version of events it's pretty much easier to say something like "it's hard to be a top manager if you own a dog".
Lots of very good former players have gone on to become very good managers. I do think "drive" is important, but so are numerous other things, with luck and timing.
For people to be arguing whether or not CL winning managers are to be considered as "top managers" makes a mockery of the point. Although Di Matteo is not a top manager for me, but has been very lucky, which is the biggest thing you need, pure luck as the margins are so fine.
27 Sep 2016 19:31:32
I would think Xabi Alonso would be a good shout for a manager once he is done. Played on different leagues, won almost everything and seems a very intelligent and a nice person.
Or may be even Xavi.